A Life Once Dreamed By Rachel Fordham

A Life Once Dreamed
by Rachel Fordham
Publisher: Revell
ISBN: 9780800735395

I was excited to see A Life Once Dreamed offered for review from Revell for this month! I have her book, Yours Truly, Thomas on my tbr shelf, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. I was thankful for the opportunity to read this book since historical fiction is one of my favorites and I was looking forward to reading Rachel's writing.

Summary:

Where you come from matters far less than where you're going
Six years ago, a shocking secret sent Agnes Pratt running in search of a new start. She found it in Penance, a rugged town of miners and lumberjacks in the Dakota Territory. In the shadow of the Black Hills, she became Miss Aggie, respected schoolteacher and confirmed old maid--despite being only twenty-four. But the past has a way of catching up with people.

When childhood friend and former sweetheart James Harris accepts a position as the town doctor, Aggie's pleasantly predictable days suddenly become anything but. James wants to know why Agnes left behind the life they had dreamed of creating for themselves--but he is precisely the one person who can never know.

Can a healing light be shed on the past? Or will the secret Agnes can't seem to outrun destroy her chance at happiness?

My Review:

A Life Once Dreamed is seriously the perfect title for this story! While we start off knowing that Aggie has a secret, even I wasn't prepared for what it would be... even trying to figure it out before we were told. So needless to say, when it's revealed, even I was surprised!

I really felt for Agnes. You could feel her struggle as she spends time with friends and their families. Even more so when James shows up on the scene. And poor James. All he wants is answers and to be accepted by his new, little town. Seems easy enough, right?

When James and Aggie see each other for the first time it creates quite the stir and the result forces them to spend a lot of time together. What I hadn't expected was Sam! Goodness, he's such a nice guy.

But, back to the main characters. Not only do I love historical novels, but ones set in a small town just give me warm fuzzies. There are always busy bodies (ahem, Minnie) and the Mayor. The friendships are always wonderful like the one between Agnes and Hannah. Everyone knows each others business and when something happens in a town like Penance, it affects everyone.

From the summary of the book you would have no idea how much happens within the pages of A Life Once Dreamed. A couple major events, but I can't speak about them because I don't want to give anything away. hahaha I know, terrible of me, but both are pivotal to the story and to the lives of Aggie and James. It's hard to be vaguebooking, but no spoilers allowed here!

In some ways the story reminded me of the tv show When Calls the Heart. It was just the feel of it that drew me into the story. And of course since I enjoy WCTH I would naturally like Rachel's story. Instead of Hearties, would we readers be called Dreamers? lol

If you're ready to head to the Dakota's this is the story for you! Now I'm looking forward to Rachel's other books!

About the Author:

Rachel Fordham is the author of The Hope of Azure Springs and Yours Truly, Thomas. She started writing when her children began begging her for stories at night. She'd pull a book from the shelf, but they'd insist she make one up. Finally, she paired her love of good stories with her love of writing and hasn't stopped since. She lives with her husband and children on an island in the state of Washington.